


A Violent Storm

by OlympianJuniper



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan
Genre: Dark Percy, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-16
Updated: 2016-07-16
Packaged: 2018-07-24 11:10:37
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,373
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7506037
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/OlympianJuniper/pseuds/OlympianJuniper
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After Percy escapes from Tartarus, he isn't himself. Every night, he's haunted with memories of that time, he has nightmares about drowning and killing the people he loves. When he has these nightmares, he involuntarily floods his cabin as a defense while he's asleep. This leads to a horrible incident that causes Percy to spiral out f control and give into the darkness in him. He starts to kill and inflict misery and pain on others to deal with the agony that the incident caused him. Will he be stooped, or will he burn down the whole camp?</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Violent Storm

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: the beginning parts in italics are taken from House of Hades by Rick Riordan. I do not own it, it was used solely for the purpose to set the plot. The character in this do not belong to me, they belong to Rick Riordan.
> 
> I've had this idea in my head for a while and I started to work on it in December/January and I finally was able to finish it – it was a long process but I managed to get through it and finish it.
> 
> I hope you enjoy it, Thank you so much for reading!

_ He wished there was water in Tartarus - some nice pool he could jump into to heal himself, or maybe a river he could control. He'd settle for a bottle of Evian. _

_ "You will feed the eternal darkness," Akhlys said. "You will die in the arms of the Night!" _

_ He was dimly aware of Annabeth shouting, throwing random pieces of drakon jerky at the goddess. _

_ The white-green poison kept pooling, little streams trickling from the plants as venomous lake around him got wider and wider. _

_ Lake, he thought. Streams. Water. _

_ Probably it was just his brain getting fried from poison fumes, but he croaked out a laugh. Poison was liquid. If it moved like water, it must be partially water. _

_ He remembered some science lecture about the human body being mostly water. _

_ He remembered extracting water from Jason's lungs back in Rome... If he could control that, then why not other liquids? _

_ It was a crazy idea. Poseidon was the god of the sea, not of every liquid everywhere. _

_ Then again, Tartarus had its own rules. Fire was drinkable. The ground was the body of a dark god. _

_ The air was acid, and demigods could be turned into smoky corpses. _

_ So why not try? He had nothing left to lose. _

_ He glared at the poison flood encroaching from all sides. He concentrated so hard that something inside him cracked - as if a crystal ball had shattered in his stomach. _

_ Warmth flowed through him. The poison tide stopped. _

_ The fumed blew away from him - back towards the goddess. The lake of poison rolled woads her in tiny waves and rivulets. _

_ Akhlys shrieked, "What is this?" _

_ "Poison," Percy said. "That's your specialty, right?" _

_ He stood, his anger growing hotter in his gut. As the flood of venom rolled towards the goddess, the fumes began to make her cough. Her eyes watered even more. _

_ Oh, good, Percy thought. More water. _

_ Percy imagined her nose and throat filling with her own tears, _

_ Akhlys gagged. "I-" The tide of venom reacher her feet, sizzling like droplets on a hot iron. She wailed and stumbled back. _

_ "Percy!" Annabeth called. _

_ She'd retreated to the edge of the cliff, even though the poison wasn't after her. She sounded terrified. It took Percy a moment to realize she was terrified of him. _

_ "Stop..." she pleaded, her voice hoarse. _

_ He didn't want to stop. He wanted to choke this goddess. He wanted to watch her drown in her own poison. He wanted to see just how much misery Misery could take. _

_ "Percy, please..." Annabeth's face was still pale and corpse-like, but her eyes were the same as always. The anguish in them made Percy's anger fade... _

Percy jumped awake, his heart raced with fear. Fear of himself. He had been having nightmares of events from Tartarus for the past few months. The memories lingered in his mind, they all seemed like they were yesterday. Percy swung his legs over his bed and massaged his temples. He felt a pool of water below his feet and looked down, he noticed that a stream of water was flowing out from his salt water fountain towards his bed and around his ankles.

"Damnit," he cursed to himself. "Not again."

He willed the water back into his fountain and sighed making his way over to the trunk at the foot of his bunk. Percy opened the trunk and pulled out his camp sweatshirt whilst pulling it over his head.

_ I should just go talk to Annabeth, maybe she’ll know how to make these nightmares go away, _ he thought to himself. His mind flashed back to the memory of him suffocating Akhlys in Tartarus, the look in Annabeth's stormy eyes made him shiver.

She was afraid of  _ him.  _ And he was afraid of himself too, he had no idea he could do such a thing like that. He glanced at his reflection in the mirror on the wall: the bags under his eyes had become darker, his skin was pale, and he just looked overall,  _ sickly.  _ His eyes casted down as he slammed the trunk closed.

Percy breathed in deeply and walked out towards the Athena Cabin.  The camp was quiet at night. The only sound Percy could hear was his soft steps against the cobblestone pathway. It was almost relaxing for him. But Percy had to be careful in case he got caught being up past curfew. 

He made it to the Athena Cabin. The outside wasn’t very interesting. It has plain, grey exterior walls and a fairly large Owl head mounted above the doors. Its piercing, grey eyes seemed to say:  _ Leave now, or be smitten down by the Goddess Athena! _

He always felt like the Owl’s eyes were watching him and one day it might shoot lasers out of its eyes and kill him. Percy knew that was impossible, but he knew how much Athena disliked him, so it would make sense that she would try to get rid of him.

He hesitantly knocked on the door, hearing muffled groans from the other side of the door. The doorknob twisted and he was greeted with a sleepy Annabeth. Her curly, blonde hair was pulled up into a messy bun, and her half-lidded, stormy grey eyes stared at him.

“Percy?”– she whispered, her voice raspy –“What’re you doing here? It’s one-thirty am.” 

Percy rubbed his arm, muttering, “I-I had a nightmare.”

Annabeth’s facial expressions softened, she stepped outside of the door and closed it behind her. She took his hand gingerly, and placed a small kiss on his cheek. “Come on, Percy. Let’s head back to your cabin.”

The walk towards his cabin was quiet. Percy didn’t mind it because he liked the quiet, especially at night. He felt her eyes on him and cleared his throat, breaking the silence, “I’m sorry, for waking you up.” Annabeth stopped walking and made him face her. 

“It’s okay, Percy,” she whispered. “I wasn’t even asleep. I, too, had a nightmare.” 

Percy frowned, he didn’t like it when Annabeth has nightmares. She became upset when she did and he wasn’t too fond with the idea of Annabeth upset.  The two continued walking along the cobblestone path, coming closer to his cabin.

“I love you, Percy,” she uttered.

Percy smiled and opened his door, “I love you too. Let’s hope Chiron doesn’t find you in my cabin with me. If he does you’re so dead.” She chuckled, nodding in agreement.

Annabeth waltzed inside and headed over to Percy’s bed. She tucked herself under the covers and patted the empty space next to her, silently telling him to come over. He moves over to the bed and slips into the sheets beside her.  

“Percy,” she yawned. “Do you think camp will ever be the same ever since the two wars?”

A soft sigh escaped his lips, “In all honesty, no – not yet at least. I believe it’ll take some time before we get camp back to how it was. Too many lives were lost in the past few years, and a lot of campers are still mourning over them. It’ll be a while before camp is the same – but for now, no.”  

Annabeth nodded her head slowly. The cabin became silent, neither of them wanted to sleep, they knew they would have more nightmares if they did. Annabeth snuggled into the sheets, resting her head on his pillow, her blonde, princess-like curls fanned out across the soft cushion. 

“I’m going to try and get some sleep,” she whispered. “Night.” 

Percy stared at her resting face for a few moments, admiring how peaceful she looked in her sleep. His eyes grew heavy as sleep devoured him completely.

_ Percy felt like he was suffocated in darkness. He sat in a long, narrow hallway. He observed his surroundings – which wasn’t much – he felt alone. His breathing pattern became unsteady as he felt more and more alone. _

_ He felt like he was trapped in a small room, and he felt like he couldn’t breathe. Percy felt trapped within the walls of the dark room. He heard disembodied voices whispering in his ears, calling him useless and pathetic. They told him that he would be the cause of the deaths of his loved ones. _

_ The walls surrounding him began to crack, and water was seeping through them. The voices wouldn’t leave him alone, they yelled at him, insulted him, and chanted that he was a ‘weakling’. Percy couldn’t take it anymore and let out a loud shriek, his hands tangling into his obsidian-black , unkempt locks. The water bursted through the walls, surrounding his ankles. He sobbed, loudly as the water rose up to his neck. He gasped for air, panicking when the water reached his chin. He felt like he was drowning – ironic for the son of Poseidon – he wheezed, coughing.  _

_ “H-Help,” he croaked out, feeling weak in his own element. “Please.” _

* * *

 

Annabeth stirred awake, hearing a stream of water, rapidly cascading down. “Percy,” she said, groggily. “Wake up.” He stayed still, captivated in his dreams. She sat up slowly and rubbed her eyes, looking around to try and find out what was making that noise. She glanced at Percy’s salt water fountain. The water was flowing out rapidly, flooding his entire cabin. 

“Percy,” she said again, this time more sternly. “Wake  _ up _ .” 

She shook his body vigorously, and he still did not wake. The water level rose, as it was now about a foot or two deep. Annabeth knew that if she stayed any longer, the water would drown her. Her eyes darted over to Percy and she took a shaky breath, crawling out of his bed.

The first thought that came to mind when she stepped into the water was:  _ My gods, it’s cold. _ The water felt as if a thousand knives were stabbing her all at once. She surged forward, through the freezing waters towards his door. The water level rose up to her thighs quite quickly. The direction of the stream pushed against Annabeth, making it harder for her to move.

“Perseus Jackson! Wake up!”, she demanded.  Percy didn’t even budge.

Annabeth’s mind was too busy freaking out that she couldn’t think of a logical way to escape the rapid waters and wake Percy. The water violently smashed up against her, causing her to lose her balance and fell back, sinking into the water. _  Percy, please… wake up, _ she thought, desperately. She was giving up on herself – which was unlike Annabeth at all – she felt death’s hands reaching for her, it’s fingertips brushing against her, draining the life out of her and dragging her down to the underworld. 

The darkness devoured her. Water closed in around her, filling her with more panic. Annabeth held her breath as long as she could, which was too long in fact. Red splotches danced in front of her stormy grey eyes. A wave came over her and it felt hot over her frosted fingers and toes. Annabeth desperately needed air. The red blotches were no longer visible by her. It was all black from closing her eyes. She opened her mouth and gasped for air but realized that she was too deep under and there was no oxygen below the surface. She choked on some water she breathed in, her lungs felt like they collapsed as she attempted to breathe in again – which only caused more salt water to be sucked into her body – she screamed out, knowing no one would hear her but a part of her hoped Percy was awake, trying to stop the water, trying to save her. 

But she knew that wasn’t going to happen, for Percy was too deep into his dreams. She wanted death to just take hold of her. She just wanted the pain to be over.

And soon, it was. Death snatched the last bit of Annabeth’s life away.

* * *

 

Percy slowly opened his eyes the next morning, and was saddened by the lost warmth of Annabeth’s body beside him. 

_ She must've left to go in her cabin so Chiron wouldn't suspect anything _ , he thought to himself. 

Percy swung his legs over the bed, and grunted as his feet sunk into his flooded floors. 

“Damnit,” he huffed. “Not again.” 

He stood, stretching his arms up and yawning loudly. He had always woke to a flooded cabin when he had nightmares ever since Tartarus. It was almost like a way of defense; he felt like he was weak when he was scared during nightmares, so his cabin flooded so it would protect him from monsters. But it didn’t protect him from the voices and the monsters in his head.

He dawdled towards his door, having an odd feeling in his gut. His breath caught when he saw a floating body with a mess of curly, blonde, unkempt locks atop their head and a drenched, grey shirt stuck to their body.

Percy’s breath hitched as he knelt down next to them, rolling them over to find Annabeth’s pale face, her lips parted and her eyes wide open. It was a truly morbid sight for Percy. 

“Annabeth?!”, he shrieked, shaking her lifeless body.

He had hoped she was just playing a cruel prank on him and that she would jump awake and scare him. Then the two would have a small argument and makeup with a quick morning make out. His heart pounded against his chest and his eyes filled with remorse and sorrow. He held her close to his chest, sobbing loudly.

“Annabeth, come back. P-Please, I’m so sorry,” he wailed, hugging her tighter. His nose nuzzled into her soaked, lemon-scented blonde locks. “I’m a monster,” he whispered, his voice trembling. “I’m a  _ monster _ .”, he repeated once more.

His body quivered, as he moved towards the door slowly, walking out. He clenched his fists, taking a deep breath. He  _ felt _ darkness in him. He wanted to yell and sob, but his throat felt dry and shriveled. He felt something inside of him snap.

He tottered towards the pavilion. Ever since Tartarus, his mind was off. He acted strange, and everyone seemed to notice that too. People started to stay away from Percy, wondering when he would snap. Percy isolated himself in his cabin or the beach most of day, only to be found by Annabeth. She was Percy’s only way to be sane, she kept him under control. And now that she’s gone there was  _ no one _ to stop him. 

“Brother!”, Tyson called out, cheerfully whilst opening his arms wide for a hug. 

Percy tensed, snapping his head towards Tyson. He strode over to the cyclops, hiding his sinister smile. He had a strange feeling inside of him, he wanted to blood to be shed onto his hands. 

Tyson wrapped his arms around Percy tightly, encasing him in a giant bear hug, “Brother!” – he squealed with excitement – “I haven’t seen you in so long. How are you? I heard Father talking and he said that you fell, are you okay?”  

“Yeah,” Percy bellowed in a deep voice that wasn’t like his own. “I’m fine.”

Tyson tilted his head to the side, quizzically, “You don’t sound fine, what’s wrong?” 

Percy’s fists tightened, his knuckles turning white. His jaw clenches slightly and he forced a tight smile, “Tyson, do you mind helping me move some things in our cabin?”

Tyson looked up from his plate, his mouth full of bacon and eggs, “Oh, uh, of course! Lead me to the cabin.”

Percy grabbed Tyson’s arm, dragging him towards Cabin Three. He felt anger boiling up inside of him. He was angry at Tyson for being born, he was furious. He wanted to watch others suffer. He wanted to feel other’s blood on his hands and hear their screams. Percy felt like he needed to make people suffer, it was like an itch he couldn’t ignore and in order to please this ‘itch’ he felt the need to slaughter anyone who he thought would stop him.

They reached their cabin, and Percy faced Tyson grinning wide. His grin gave off a menacing vibe which made Tyson feel a little uneasy. 

He wrapped his arms around Tyson, encasing him in a tight bear-hug, “Thank you,” he whispered. “For helping me. I really appreciate it.”

Tyson was tense at first, but relaxed into the hug. Percy tightened his arms slightly, an arm moved up to his neck and his hand grasped his throat. 

“Brother,” he gasped out. “Are you okay?”

Percy’s arms and hand tightened more, Tyson coughed violently desperate for air. “I’m fine, Tyson. You don’t need to worry about me.”, he laughed quietly, in a maniacal manner.

Tyson started shaking, gasping for air and coughing more as Percy crushed him in his arms, “Brother! Please stop,” he cried out. “You’re scaring me!”

Percy’s eyes were dark like a stormy sea, “You should be,” he hissed. “Because I’m a  _ monster _ .” 

He clasped both of his hands around Tyson’s neck, tightly. The cyclops sobbed, struggling to push Percy off of him. His trachea felt crushed by Percy’s hands that were strangling his throat. Percy grabbed his half-brother’s neck and snapped it, laughing in a sinister way as Tyson’s limp body hit the cobblestone pathway.

Madness stole into his mind like a thief and took away what was important to Percy. New ideas that once he would have thought of as dangerous and absurd started to make sense to him. He cascaded out of control and was lured further from the normal self that Percy and everyone else once knew.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          

* * *

He heaved Tyson’s body into his cabin, dropping it next to his door. He stumbled over to Annabeth’s limp, cold body and knelt beside it, brushing some damp locks from her pale face.

“I swear I will get revenge on my father for giving me these powers,” his voice quavered. “And I will kill  _ anyone _ who gets in my way.” 

His eyes brimmed with tears, shaking with despair. Percy curled up in the fetal position and began to cry. He wasn’t crying out of despair, he was crying because he felt confused, his emotions were screwed up. When the wracking sobs subsided, he went to the bathroom to wash his face with cool water. He barely recognised the unshaved person looking back at him, those hollow, deranged eyes stared back at him. He'd have to pull himself together, and hide this side of him in front of other people. He knew if they saw what he was doing – what his plan was – they’d try to stop him. 

He liked this new feeling in his veins, he liked feeling that adrenaline rush when he killed someone. His lips tugged into a sinister smile, his reflection smiling back. His hair was unkempt and disheveled, he had dark bags under his eyes and sweat dripping down his forehead. He liked this new Percy. The old one was too nice, too gentle, too  _ sane _ . This new Percy, however, was ambitious and spiteful.  

He walked in circles, hoping to pass time and to distract himself from the murder. Percy’s mind filled with outrageous, malignant thoughts.

He had an odd gait and leaned to the side a bit. He scuffed over to his group of friends, whom were chatting quietly.  

“Oh hey, Percy,” Leo said with his signature crooked grin.

Percy nodded his head, acknowledging Leo’s presence. He didn’t dare to speak, he was afraid he would say the wrong thing. He was quite shocked to see that Hazel and Frank were here, they should’ve been at Camp Jupiter. But he recalled that Jason had told him about Reyna letting them take a week off from watching the camp.

Hazel glanced over at him and smiled softly, “Hey Percy! Do y’know where Annabeth went? Piper and I were lookin’ for her all day,” her voice was sweet and mellow, and her Louisiana accent was soothing.

Percy swallowed hard nodding his head, “Uhm, yeah,” he whispered. “She took a walk in the forest to clear her mind. She’s been very stressed out lately.”

Hazel frowned, crossing her arms, “Alrighty then, I’ll go find her myself.”, she said standing up from her chair.  Percy quickly shot up, and held his arm out in front of her for her to grab, “I’ll assist you into the forest. They’re quite dangerous and I want to make sure you’re okay.”

The daughter of Pluto grinned, thankful to have a friend like Percy, “Well that’s very sweet of you, darlin’,” she giggled, grabbing his arm, “Thank you, Percy.” 

Percy’s head started to ring once again. His brain felt like it was swollen and it felt as if it were pounding against his skull. He clenched his jaw tightly, trying to ignore the discomfort. He withdrew his arm from Hazel and held his head in his palms, massaging his scalp. 

“ _ Gods _ ,” he whined. “Not again.” The other demigod’s conversations seemed to quiet down, and they all stared at Percy. 

“Percy,” Jason questioned, concerned. “Are you alright?” 

He nodded, groaning as he rubbed his temples between his fingers. “Yeah, just a bad headache. That’s all.” The demigods’ gaze stayed on Percy for a while before they continued with their conversations.

They padded along the trail, stepping over sticks and fallen trees. The forest was quite serene; it made Percy feel uncomfortable. His mind raced with ideas on how to kill Hazel. Should he try to stab her? Decapitate her? He just couldn’t decide.  Hazel slowed down, her golden eyes glittering as they gazed over at him. 

“She should be somewhere close, right?” she shifted uncomfortably, rubbing her neck. “I don’t wanna walk too far into this ‘ere eerie forest.”

Percy nodded his head slowly, his long, nimble fingers twiddling with Anaklusmos in his pocket. “She’s in her uhm, secret hiding spot for when she needs to calm down. Close your eyes.”

Hazel gave him an odd look, “Why do I have to close my eyes?”, she interrogated, her gilded eyes laced with hesitation.

“Just do it!”, he snapped, his eyes resembling a stormy sea. Hazel flinched slightly, covering her eyes with her hands, “Alright, alright. I closed my eyes. Make this lickety split. Piper ain’t gonna be happy if y’all make her wait too long.”

Percy nodded his head slowly, he skulked slowly around Hazel, drawing Anaklusmos from his pocket. He would have to do this quick, so she wouldn’t scream and cry for help. She would ruin everything if she did.   Percy remembered his other friends. They would come looking for Hazel, they would find her life-less, limp body laid out on the forest trails. Blood surrounding her. They would see the blood on Percy’s hands and suspect he killed her. And, of course, he will be the one to kill her but then they would try to make him sane again. He enjoyed being insane and delusional, it made adrenaline rush through his veins. He felt more lively.  

“Are y’all’s done yet?” – Hazel grunted – “Can I look ‘round now?”

Percy didn’t answer. He uncapped his pen, and Anaklusmos sprung free into it’s medium-length, celestial bronze, xiphos form. The sword gleamed in the faint sunlight from behind the trees, it’s blade was perfectly sharp. He clamped his hand over Hazel’s mouth. Her eyes shot open and she let out a muffled shriek, her brain trying to process what was happening. 

“Stop squirming,” he hissed, his voice coarse and fiendish. He plunged the sword into Hazel’s back.  The celestial bronze sliced through her dark skin with little effort and dug straight in. Instantly, she cried out for help, trying to shove him away. A searing burn flared up her side, consuming her in pain. Besides pain, nerves were starting to rise and burn in her. Percy jerked the celestial bronze xiphos in a bit further before wrenching it out suddenly. 

Percy giggled to himself and smeared some of the blood on her wound on him. He made a few cuts on his cheek and scratched himself a little to add to make the others believe that they were attacked.

Percy knelt besides Hazel’s lifeless body and let out a convincing, horrified shriek, alarming the others.

The first voice he heard was Frank’s, “Hazel? Percy? Is everything okay?!”

He made it to the scene first. He gasped when he saw Hazel’s lifeless body in Percy’s arms, surrounded by a pool of her own crimson blood.      The other arrived behind him and they were just as shocked as Frank was. 

“P-Percy,” Piper whispered, choking on her words. “What happened?”

Percy looked up at them, his sea-green eyes were red and filled with tears. He looked quite believable. He choked on his sobs, trying to speak.

“I don’t know how, but a gorgon got into camp,” he sobbed, choking on his words. “It attacked us and I tried to protect Hazel – I really did – but she jumped in front of the gorgon to save me.”

Frank visibly shook as he knelt down next to Hazel, his arms wrapping around her and hugging her tight. He dug his face into Hazel’s dark, thick curly hair whilst sobbing uncontrollably. Her and Frank had been the best of friends, they did almost everything together and everyone assumed they were dating, but they were just friends.  He tangled his fingers in her thick, curly, locks. 

“She deserves a proper burial,” Jason whispered, his voice hoarse and raspy from crying. “We’ll take her back to Camp Jupiter, and have a proper ceremony for a hero’s death.” 

Percy and Leo made eye contact, Leo visibly shivered as he caught a glance of the sinister look in Percy’s eyes. He could see the storm rising in his eyes, the waves crashing against the rocks. The son of Poseidon’s lips curled into a tight, demonic grin. Leo stared at him, his jaw agape. 

_ “Shh _ ,” Percy mouthed, placing a finger on his lips. “ _ Don’t tell anyone. _ ” 

Leo’s chocolate brown eyes widened, his hands trembled, his lip quivered. He started to put all the pieces together. Percy’s cabin smelling like dead corpses, Hazel’s death when there was no possible way of a gorgon getting into camp. The blood on Percy’s hands. He stared at Percy in complete, utter shock.

“Percy,” Leo hissed. “You killed Hazel, didn’t you?” 

“Excuse me?” – Percy let out a convincing cry – “How dare you assume such obscure things?! I can’t believe out of  _ all _ people, you would assume that. You know that I would never hurt any of my friends, you know that I would die for my friends. And for you to think that I would  _ kill _ my own friend? How  _ dare _ you.”

Piper stared at Leo, her multicolored eyes laced with anger and sorrow, “Seriously, Leo? That is the dumbest thing you’ve ever said. That’s so disrespectful to accuse a friend of killing their friend, especially when it’s Percy. He’s the most loyal person I know.”

Leo’s eyebrows furrowed, he gritted his teeth in frustration, “ _ No _ . Percy killed Hazel, he’s a monster! I swear I can prove it to you, he committed amicicide!”

Percy clenched his jaw and spun on his heel, “I’m going for a walk, I need to clear my head.”

A scowling frown crept onto Piper’s face, she turned to Leo and shoved her arms into his chest, cursing silently to herself. Leo puffed his cheeks out and folded his arms over his chest, “I’m  _ not _ apologizing to him if that’s what you want me to do.”

“Leo, go apologize.”

“No, I don’t need to. He’s a monster.”

“ _ Leo _ , go apologize  _ now. _ ” Piper’s multicolored eyes were fierce and anger was etched across her face. Leo swallowed a dry lump in his throat, obviously feeling scared but he stood his ground, a sly grin tugging at his lips.

“No,  _ make  _ me apologize.”

Piper gritted her teeth, her jaw clenching, “If you don’t go and apologize right now, I swear to all the gods on Olympus, I will destroy all of your ‘mechanical friends’, including Festus.”

A soft gasp emitted from Leo’s mouth, “Fine! I’ll go apologize to him.”

Leo scuffed in the direction of where Percy had headed off to, his feet kicked the twigs and leaves that were scattered on the grounds of the forest. He shoved his hands into his pockets and huffed, darting his eyes around until he noticed a figure hunched over the small lake in the middle of the forest.

Percy stared at his reflection rippling in the calm lake. He wore a dismal frown on his lips, he didn’t like that the water was so calm. Calmness made him uncomfortable, it made him want to start a ruckus and strangle someone. He wanted to find his way to Olympus and get rid of anyone and everyone who would try to stop him. Percy desired to overthrow the gods, he dreamed of seeking revenge on his father for giving him these powers –  _ he  _ was the reason why Annabeth is dead,  _ he’s _ the one to blame for causing Percy to go insane. But of course he needed to figure out how to even overthrow all the gods. Maybe he could create an alliance with other gods or titans that seek the same desires as him – to overthrow the gods of Olympus – there were plenty of gods and titans and other creatures out there that were angry at Olympus. He could easily gather them all up. 

Percy’s thoughts were abruptly stopped by Leo clearing his throat behind him. Percy’s muscles tensed, this was his chance to get rid of the son of Hephaestus before he runs off and shows everyone the two rotting corpses in his cabin. 

“What do you want? Here to accuse me of things I didn’t do?” Percy hissed.

Leo sighed, he pulled out some nuts and bolts from his tool belt and twiddled with them nervously, “No, I just came here to apologize. I’m sorry for accusing you of killing Hazel.”

Percy hid his smug grin, folding his arms over his chest, “I forgive you Valdez.”

“Yeah, I figured you wouldn’t – wait what? You seriously forgive me?” Leo looked completely bewildered.

“I forgive you, yes. Hey, Bunker Nine is around here right? I need to use the bathroom and I figured that you would have a bathroom in there.”

Leo gave a quick nod and led Percy to Bunker Nine. On the outside, the bunker was disguised as a boulder, with vines and tree branches around it. Leo pressed his hand against the door, it read his handprint and slowly opened the door. The inside was gigantic and filled with tools, and unfinished projects. It smelled of burnt metal and musky sweat. 

“Right down that hall,” Leo directed, pointing to a hallway towards Percy’s right. “Last door on the left is where the bathroom is. I’ll be over there working on some projects.”

Percy slowly nodded and treaded down the hallway, watching Leo in the corner of his eye. He pushed the door open and stood in front of the small mirror that hung on the wall. A sinister smirk tugged against his lips and his reflection smirked back at him with that same sinister look. He had a bit of blood on his cheek, and some scratches on his forehead. He can hear the voices in his head, they speak to him and make him feel better like he isn’t alone. These malevolent voices in his head seem to be his only true friends, they’re the only ones who truly understood him. He splashed his face with water and took one last glance at his reflection before walking out of the bathroom.

“Dude,” He heard Leo ask. “Did you even flush?”

“Turns out I didn’t really have to go,” Percy lied. He walked out towards Leo, his jaw tightening. He glanced around, trying to find out the best way possible to get rid of him. He noticed a rack of large tools and metal hanging above Leo’s work desk and an idea came to  Percy. He lumbered over to the rack, making sure Leo wasn’t watching him. In one quick, swift move he yanked on the weakened ropes. 

The son of Hephaestus’ head shot up from his work, “Percy, what’re you doing to my ra–” an onslaught of Leo’s tools and unfinished products crashed onto him. A loud, ear-piercing screech escaped his lips. He struggled under the mound of metal, wiggling his arm out. 

“P-Percy,” he coughed. “Help me, please. I can’t breathe.”

Percy just stared at him as he stretched his arm out for help. A wide, malicious grin stretched across Percy’s face. He let out a low chuckle, deep within his throat. It sounded nothing of how he used to laugh, his laughs used  to be light and contagious. But this took on a whole other level. His wicked eyes shone with mercilessness and cruelty, it made Leo cower in fear. 

“You were right about me, Valdez,” he hissed. “ _ I _ was the one who caused Hazel’s death. I also killed Tyson, too.”

Leo stared at him, shock and pain etched upon his face. “You  _ what _ ? What is wrong with you, dude? Why would you kill your own step-brother and your friend?!”

“Because,” he tightened his jaw, clenching his fists. “Annabeth drowned because of  _ me _ . I flooded my cabin whilst trapped in a nightmare. I blame my father for giving me these powers, this is  _ his _ fault. I want to kill him, and I will murder  _ anyone _ who dares try to get in my way and stop me.” 

Leo winced in pain, his brown eyes wide with fear and discomfort. The tools and metal crushed him. His muscles ached, his bones were crushed. He gasped for air, screaming out for help once more. He just wanted the pain to end, he wished this was just a nightmare and that one of his closest friends didn’t just cut the rope on his rack and watch him be crushed to death with a sinister grin. 

The room grew silent, and Percy’s grin stretched farther across his face. His eyes darted over to Leo’s body, blood was pooling around his head as he laid limp under the hill of metal. Percy whistled a small tune as he knelt down and patted Leo’s head full of unkempt curls that were covered in his blood.

“You see,” he whispered. “This is why you don’t try to blow my cover, Valdez. I hope you learned your lesson.”

He tottered out of the bunker and stumbled through the woods to find his friends. He had found them in the same spot as they were before he left. Frank was holding Hazel’s limp body in his arms tightly, running his fingers through her matted down, dark curls.  He traced circles on her cold, bronzed skin.

“Frank,” Piper said sternly, her charmspeak washed over him. “Come on, let’s head over to the Big House so we can report Hazel’s mysterious death to Chiron, he can try to help us find out her killer and we’ll go after them and give her a proper burial for heroes at Camp Jupiter.”

Enchanted by her charmspeak, Frank stood and released Hazel from his tight grip. Jason tightened his jaw when he saw Percy emerge from the bushes without Leo behind him. He began to think about what the son of Hephaestus had said about Percy. It started to make sense, his cabin did reek of decaying flesh and Percy had been acting quite strange lately. He also hasn’t seen Annabeth around all day, usually she was hanging around with Percy on Tuesday’s. 

“Where’s Leo?” Jason inquired.

“He went to Bunker Nine to finish some projects,” Percy said monotonously.

Jason nodded his head slowly, his stare lingering on him for a few, “Come on, Piper. Let’s just head down to Chiron and call Reyna up so she can help.” Piper gave a quick nod and pulled Frank out of the forest behind Jason.

Percy clenched his fists and tightened his jaw, “If Frank wants to be with his best friend, then I’ll just have to reunite them.”

* * *

 

Percy’s gaze was intently focused on the ocean, his fists tightened at his sides. His toes sunk into the sand as the waves pulled back out into the sea, his brooding stare set along the horizon. A new wave crashed against the rock beside him every time he clenched his fists. His head shot up as he heard faint footsteps on the sand behind him.

“Percy,” Grover whispered, his voice frail. “Something’s up, I know it. You’re not like yourself anymore. And I haven’t seen Annabeth around, have you two broken up or something?”

Percy physically flinched at the mention of Annabeth, “It’s something… Much worse and more complicated than just a simple break-up.”

Grover stepped forward, his dark brown eyes casting a worried look upon his best friend. “Percy,” – he sighed – “did you cheat? Did she cheat?” Percy shook his head for both.

“Well,” the satyr huffed. “What happened? Tell me the truth.”

Percy shook his head, slowly turning around. “That’s the thing, Grover, no one can know about it. I can’t tell  _ anyone _ , not even you. Just leave, Grover. Leave me be.”

Grover noticed the uprising of waves in Percy’s eyes – a look he only saw when he was fighting in the first war. He stepped back a little, swallowing as Percy’s baleful stare intensified. 

“I said  _ leave _ ” Percy hissed, his fists clenching tightly that his knuckles whitened. 

Grover flinched, staring at him appalled. He swallowed a dry lump in his throat and nodded his head sternly, “Fine. If you want me to leave, then I will. It’s not like I care about my best friend’s mental health and well-being.” He plodded off towards the Big House.

* * *

 

That night was cold and moonless, the atmosphere was ominous and dark. It hurt to breathe since the air was so chilled and frigid. Percy sat on his bunk, staring blankly at the his wall. He had wondered if anyone found Leo’s body by now. He wondered if anyone would find out it was him. Leo had already suspected him and since he’s dead, the others might suspect Percy too. That worried him. He would have to slaughter anyone who suspected him, he couldn’t get caught when he was so far into his plan for revenge. 

All he had to do, though, was act innocent and play victim. No one would suspect him then. 

“Percy,” a muffled voice called from the other side of his door. “Open up, I need to talk to someone and you’re the closest friend I have.”

By the deepness of the voice, Percy could tell immediately that it was Frank. The corner of his lips twitched upright, schemingly. 

“Uh, in a second, let me change real quick” he bluntly lied. Percy shoved the two corpses of Annabeth and Tyson into his closet, making sure the door was locked and tightly shut. There was a horrendous odor left in his room, but he could blame that on his dirty clothes in his hamper which have been laying there for about a week. 

He only opened his door a crack and peeped his head out, looking up at Frank. 

“What is it?” Percy asked as calmly as he can. 

“I just need to talk to someone, I feel lonely without Hazel” Frank muttered under his breath. Percy stared at him for a few minutes, his brain processing whether or not if this was a good time to kill him. 

“Alright, we’ll walk down to the beach? The beach always calms me when I’m stressed and it might calm you”  Percy suggested, stepping out of his cabin cautiously. 

Frank nodded slowly, trying to catch a glimpse into the Poseidon cabin. Percy noticed that and narrowed his eyes at the son of Mars, “Do you mind? That’s kind of rude of you to try and sneak a peek at someone’s privacy.”

Frank looked down at the cobblestone path ashamedly, “I-I’m sorry, I was just curious as to why it kind of smells like something’s rotting in your cabin.”

Percy clenched his jaw tight, trying his hardest to not snap Frank’s neck, “It’s my dirty clothes. I haven’t washed them in weeks, are you happy now?”

Frank nodded his head slowly, and spun on his heel facing the direction of the beach. Percy grit his teeth and headed towards the beach with Frank, his mind trying to figure out how to get rid of him.

“I miss her so much,” Frank admitted. “I wish I could see her again, or just hear her voice. She was my best friend.”

Percy nodded his slowly, his eyes lingering on Frank. “You’ll see her again” he stated. 

“Yeah, I know, but that’ll be later on in life when I die of old age,” – he sighed – “I should’ve been there to help you guys.”

Percy stayed silent, standing next to the torches at the entrance of the beach, the flames dancing in the reflection of his dark eyes. He clenched his fists and faced Frank, he threw his all his body weight and strength behind the punch. It hit Frank’s jaw with a loud crack as blood began to pool in his mouth. Percy drew his bruised fist back again and it ploughed into Frank’s gut, while his chest moved with each shallow breath he took in. 

Frank lay on the ground, coughing up blood and groaning in pain. “Percy, what was that for?!” he slurred.

Percy stayed silent, he grabbed Frank’s shirt collar and yanked him up, shoving him against a tree. His lifeless, cold, nefarious eyes bore into Frank in such a heinous way it made Frank visibly shudder. He raised his bloody fist up, his jaw clenched tightly 

Frank gasped for air, “What’re you doing? Stop!” he pleaded.

Percy’s fist struck into Frank’s gut forcefully once more. Frank’s crumpled body hit the cobblestone pathway as he gasped for air, but oxygen evaded his grasp. He  managed to roll over on his side and vomit. He couldn’t protect his body from any more damage that Percy would inflict on him. Percy watched him wriggle around and try to get up to run away. He leaned down and wrapped his calloused, bloody fingers around Frank’s neck.

“Guess what?” he hissed, “ _ I _ was the one who killed your best friend.” 

Frank stared at Percy in pure terror, he reached up and tried to pry Percy’s hands off from his neck, but his grip only tightened. Frank was much more harder for Percy to choke than Tyson. He was a lot more stronger and he could easily shove him off. 

The air became more silent. Percy felt Frank become limp in his hands. The way his lips lifted upward into a crooked smile was unsettling. He grabbed Frank’s arm and dragged him towards the shore where he then left his body there. 

He stared at his fists, trembling and muttering incoherent words.  He had lost his mind. His knees dug into the cold sand as he hit the ground, his hands were unsteady as they reached up and gripped his black, oily locks. He opened his mouth, but no sound dared escape his lips, his head violently shaking and his fingers yanking at his hair. His eyes were lifeless; they were dull and dark. A shriek tries to escape his lips but it is silent, saliva dripped from his mouth. 

He didn’t know why he was crying, he didn’t feel bad about killing Frank or any of the others. Killing them made him feel more powerful, yet, he was crying.  He took in a shaky breath and stood, brushing the sand off of him. 

Percy’s red, puffy eyes staring down at Frank’s contorted limbs. He let out a soft giggle and spun around, walking off. He made sure his heels kicked sand against Frank. 

_ They’re going to start to suspect me one day. I’ll have to get rid of all of them before they all decide to turn against me.  _

Percy giggled to himself, “I’ll just kill them all if I have to.”

* * *

 

“Perc,” Grover whispered. “Wake up. Chiron is ordering all campers to meet at the arena–apparently he found a dead body this morning on the beach– but that could be a rumor.”

Percy stared up through half-lidded eyes at Grover, he seemed to be shaking and gnawing on a tin can. He looked around at his surroundings and realized that he had fallen asleep last night in the forest near Juniper’s tree. He hadn’t remembered going into the woods last night, all he remembered was falling asleep, exhausted in his bed. Perhaps he has slept walked into the woods late at night.

“I sure hope it’s a rumor,” the satyr muttered, “I don’t want to become some monster’s lunch. It might not ever be a monster! What if it’s a camper? What if someone is turning against us, just like Lu–” 

Percy cupped his hand over Grover’s mouth, acting as calm as he can, “Grover, there are no monsters nor are there any campers like Luke that will turn against us. It’ll be alright, man, just stay calm,” he lied.

Grover nodded his head, mumbling, “You’re right. Thanks, Perc.” 

Percy gave a sincere smile and sat up slowly, picking the leaves and twigs out of his hair and off of his clothes. He felt like his head was spinning. He had hoped that Grover didn’t go into his cabin.  _ No _ ― he thought ―  _ if he has seen my cabin, he would be screaming at me and asking what I have done. _

“Percy! I’ve been calling your name over and over,” Grover looked down at him, concerned. “Are you alright? You’ve been blanking out quite a lot recently.”

Percy nodded his head, rubbing his eyes, “I’m fine. Don’t worry, I’m just tired, that’s all.” 

Grover nodded his head slowly, “Alright, come on, Chiron will be mad if we don’t show up.” 

* * *

 

Percy knew that Chiron suspected that something was up with him. He could tell from the occasional worried glances he would make at him.

“Now, as some of you may have found out from other campers” - his darted over to Connor Stoll - “this morning we found the dead body of the Roman Praetor, Frank Zhang. He was visiting us for a while and this morning I had found him lying on the beach shore all mangled up.”

There were a few worried murmurs and a few people asking if a monster had gotten in.

“I don’t want any of you to panic. Lately there has been quite a few deaths in this camp. We aren’t sure why, but we’re on a case to see what or  _ who _ ” – Chiron quickly glanced at Percy – “is to blame for this death, and there has been other occurrences of death around camp. There’s no need for you all to panic, me and some of the cabin leaders are on the case of these murders. If you see  _ anything _ suspicious, please inform me or your cabin leader. As for now, try not to wander alone in the evening and try not to go into the forest.”

The worried mutters of the campers echoed in the arena, becoming louder and louder as people became more concerned. Percy felt anxious, he needed to move around, he couldn’t be near all these people. He abruptly stood up, his hand twitching.

“Would you all just  _ shut up _ already?” - everything went silent - “There are  _ no _ monsters in this camp so just stop panicking and shut up.” 

Percy was fumed with anger, he shook violently, his fists clenching tightly by his sides. He wanted them to stop talking because he could hear each whisper, each statement about a possibility that a camper was the cause for the deaths.

“Percy, are you alright?” Grover questioned, his hand tugging on his wrist.

He stood still, his eyes meeting with everyone that stared at him, “I’m fine, leave me alone.” He yanked his arm away from Grover and trampled to his cabin.

Percy was beyond furious. He flipped his furniture and threw Anaklusmos at the wall. He hated his powers, he hated Poseidon for giving him his powers which caused Annabeth’s death. He stared at his reflection in the mirror, what stared back was a lifeless skeleton, with its dark, sunken eyes cold and brooding.

There was a knock at the door, followed by Grover muttering something incoherently.

“Percy! Would you open up, already? I always know when something’s bothering you,” Grover yelled, placing his hand on the doorknob. “If you don’t open up I  _ will _ kick down this door.” 

Percy’s eyes darted over to the two decaying bodies of Annabeth Chase and Tyson in the corner of his room. He dashed to the door and opened it a crack, poking his head out slightly.

“What do you–”

“Jeez,” Grover groaned, cutting him off, “What’s that horrid stench, dude? When was the last time you cleaned your cabin?! It smells like rotting flesh in there! Why don’t I go get the cleaning supplies from the Big House and then we can clean your cabin together, it’ll be like a nice bonding time for us like the good ol’ days before all of”–Grover waved his hands around, showcasing the camp–”this happened.’

Percy shook his head, vigorously, “No, get away from my cabin and get away from me. I  _ don’t _ want to talk to you or anyone else got it? So leave me alone and never come back” his voice was harsh and cold, nothing like his usual gentle voice.

Grover was taken aback by this, his brows furrowed and his lip trembled, “What’s your problem?! You’ve been acting so rude lately and it’s not like you at all.”

Percy opened his door wider, his lips curled into a frown, “ _ I’m  _ the one acting weird? What about you, huh? You’re only talking to me lately and it’s weird, where are your other friends?”

The satyr knit his brows together, “The only close friends I have are Annabeth and you! And Annabeth hasn’t been around for the past few–” 

Percy noticed him looking over his shoulder, his cocoa brown eyes widened and his lip trembled. He knew what Grover was staring at. He clenched his jaw and closed his door slightly, “Grover, just leave. I don’t want to see you ever again.” Percy slammed his door shut, locking it and pushing a chair up against it.

He wasn’t sure why he hadn’t hid the two decaying bodies in his room. He heard Grover sprint off and his mind began to play scenes of how this would end. Grover was probably running off to tell Chiron about what he saw, then Chiron would figure out that  _ Percy _ was the cause for the other deaths. He would try to stop Percy and his plan would be ruined. He needed to leave now so he could get to Olympus. He needed to find Poseidon and overthrow him.

* * *

 

By the time it was night, Percy was packed and ready to leave camp. He knew that if he stayed in camp, he would be punished and possibly attacked by other campers. He knelt down next to the rotting corpse of Annabeth Chase and placed his hand against her pale, cold cheek.

“This will be the last time I can see you probably, I’m sorry.”

Percy lurched out of his cabin, making sure that no one was watching, and headed to the entrance of camp. He knew that he had to do this quickly and be far from camp by morning or Chiron will track him down. He couldn’t have that happen. 

His footsteps were heavy and loud against the cobblestone pathways, he feared that his loud footsteps might wake a camper who happened to be a light sleeper, but he managed to make it to the entrance of camp without waking anyone.

As he stood there, he examined every detail of the camp’s entrance sign as if he would never see it again and he was taking everything in for his memories. The entrance sign was large– about fifteen feet tall –and it was constructed completely out of marble. It was getting old, so there were vines growing up the pillars. Atop the pillars, sat a marble sign which read: 

_ WELCOME TO CAMP HALF-BLOOD _

“Percy,” – Grover croaked, walking to him. Percy grit his teeth, averting his eyes from the satyr – “Why? – just – why? What set you off to be like this? Why are you killing your friends?” 

“Leave me be, Grover. This has  _ nothing _ to do with you,” Percy hissed. “Leave.”

Grover swallowed a dry lump in his throat and placed a hand on Percy’s shoulder. Percy could see him shaking in fear and the beads of sweat dripping down his face. 

“Percy, I’m not leaving. You’re my best friend. I’m supposed to help you and I don’t know what’s going on in your brain, but–” Percy’s hand gripped around Grover’s throat. He strangled him tightly, his eyes full of pure hatred.

“I don’t want your help. I don’t  _ need _ help. Now, I’m going to leave camp to go to Olympus and if you  _ dare _ try to stop me,” he released his grip on Grover’s throat. “I swear I will kill you.”

Percy was about to sprint off away from camp, but Grover grabbed his wrist tightly, yelling out Chiron’s name. His anger boiled inside of him, Grover held a tight grip on his wrist, refusing to let him go.

“Percy, stop trying to get away. This isn’t you. Please, I just want to help –” Grover’s face grew pale, his shirt became stained in his thick, crimson blood. Percy’s blade was sunk deep into the satyr’s gut. 

“P-Percy,” Grover cried softly. The thick blood spread more into his shirt. It had started to darken from the bright crimson to a dark brown hue. Grover shook uncontrollably, falling to his knees. Percy stared at him, his eyes were dark and hollow, he looked as if killing Grover meant nothing to him. Grover placed his hands over his wound as Percy drew back his celestial bronze xiphos. He desperately croaked out for Chiron once more. 

Percy spoke in a sinister, cold voice that even he had never heard, “I want to watch you suffer. I want to watch you die slowly. I  _ told _ you to leave me alone, and this is what happens when you don’t do as I say. I don’t want to hear any useless cries for help and pity, I don’t care if you’re, ‘only trying to help me.’ I don’t  _ need _ help.” 

The hatred inside Percy had masqueraded all of the compassion inside him. It consumed him whole. He heard hooves behind him, galloping against the cobblestone pathway grow louder and louder, but he was too focused on enjoying Grover’s misery and death.

“Perseus, what – what have you done?” – Chiron demanded, galloping up behind Percy and Grover’s lifeless body – “You were the one who killed the other campers, weren’t you?”

Percy stayed quiet, backing away from the centaur. He knew that Chiron was probably the only one powerful enough to stop him. He didn’t know what to do – or what to say.

“Percy, please answer me. It was you, wasn’t it? Why did you do it?” Chiron demanded, his face laced with concern. Percy hared off, out of the camp. He didn’t want anyone else to try and stop him. 

The humidity made him feel like he was suffocated. His orange camp shirt and his dark hair clung to his body, covered in perspiration. He could feel his heart in his chest, beating rapidly and pulsating and his legs stung and felt like lead. Percy ran as fast as he could, he wasn’t sure if they were following him and frankly, he did not care because he knew that they would never be able to catch up to him. His throat stung, felt sore and dry, he didn’t want to stop for water or anything. The only thing that kept him going was the burning fire of hatred in him. He lost track of time when he was running – weeks passed by him quickly. He didn’t care about time, it was irrelevant to him. Percy ran and ran.

But, he stopped and it was all over.


End file.
